Greetings enthusiast, I’m pleased to bring forth good tidings in the form of new additions to our 'Top Shelf' room. In between torrential Auckland downpours it seems that the heavens have opened for a fleeting moment of magic and delivered neither three, nor four… but five new Martin acoustic guitars, making Lewis Eady Music your one stop tone shop in New Zealand for premium quality acoustic guitars. Come and enjoy the balmy 21 degree warmth of our 'Top Shelf' room, relax on the couch and strum yourself to a brighter place. In the interim, here is a brief on each of new arrivals.
OMJM
John Mayer. Ladies love him, men want to be him, and Martin made a guitar for him. And we have it! The OMJM John Mayer Special Edition is a beautiful instrument that is as lovely to look at as it is to play. The 000 body size sat comfortably in my lap and the 1 11/16” neck width felt more like a Stratocaster than Martin acoustic near the nut. Matched with a low profile Select Hardwood neck and Ebony fingerboard it makes for very smooth, fast and responsive action all the way up the neck. Martin have pulled out all the stops here, Solid Engelmann Spruce top, Solid East Indian Rosewood back and sides. All of these contributing to the OMJM producing some of the most even sounding tones I’ve heard in a while. The lows aren’t overbearing, mids are punchy and highs are crisp and clear. The Paua rosette, Gotoh open back butterbean tuners, grained binding and signed twentieth fret give this guitar a vintage vibe with a personal touch.
M-38
Sporting a 0000 body size the M38 is renowned for producing Dreadnought like volume with a little less bass. The shallow body width (16 inches) makes for quicker decay and more tonal balance overall, not to mention a very comfy feel. The top is Solid Sitka Spruce and has been treated with a very nice vintage toner, giving it that aged look that will only get better as the years go by. The back and sides are high quality East Indian Rosewood and show a very impressive grain that when framed with the white Bolteron binding, looks quite smashing indeed. To play the M38 has a very forgiving feel in that each strum seemed to seep into the next and voicing chords became very flowing and effortless. Individual notes sustain delightfully to create lush overtones giving the M38 a voice all of its own.
D-18
The name Dreadnought was originally given to the guitar in reference to its large shape, likened to the predominant battleship design of time that boasted the same name. Where this model differs from other Martin Dreadnoughts is in its Mahogany back and sides as apposed to Rosewood which both the D-28 and D-35 both feature. A weightier piece of work, this is largely due to the fact that it doesn’t have scalloped bracing. This could be good for the heavier handed folks out there, as I found that laying into the D-18 produced some excellent sound. It’s fairly stock standard in its look, matching black body binding and scratch guard and simple dot inlays. The Rosewood neck has a nice earthy feel to it.
OMCPA4
Part of the Performing Artist Series, designed to incorporate the traditional Martin feel with the convenience of a modern acoustic-electric the OMCPA4 comes ready to roll with a Fishman F1 Analog pick up and built in tuner. Its cutaway design means that even when reaching for those top frets the player still has oodles of space to work with. This is an all solid wood guitar (neck included) which also comes with a case and the price is lower than you think… I found it to be very forgiving in its playability and responsive to a number of different techniques. Whether strumming through some cowboy chords, bending single notes or picking folk styles the OMCPA4 delivered each time.
DC-1EL
Now I did my best Anika Moa impersonation to try and get a handle on this guitar. Because it’s left handed and I couldn’t really play it that well, but hey, I gave it a go. It’s an all solid Sitka Spruce top with solid Sapele back and sides. The pick up is a Fishman Presys which incorporates a tuner as well, so it will appeal to those that are gigging and not wanting to carry extra gear (i.e. stage tuner). Features a plain black body binding, and scratch plate.
Post by Edward Castelow (Lewis Eady)
great blog can't wait to come in and try them - John
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